Happy Birthday Michael Haneke: Watch 4 Of His Best Films for Free Online

Happy Birthday Michael Haneke: Watch 4 Of His Best Films for Free Online

Few directors have achieved international renown comparable to Michael Haneke. Two of his films have claimed the prestigious Palme D’Or at Cannes (“Amour” and “The While Ribbon”). He’s an auteur of the highest caliber: his oeuvre, largely drawing from the traditions of literature and philosophy, is unique in its muted but controversial style. His films ooze with latent violence, pregnant silences, allegories, complex characters navigating an unforgiving world, and cinematography that’s both stark and exquisite. What makes Haneke’s work most compelling, though, is that he’s uninterested in entertainment value. Instead, he’s interested in exposing and chronicling the human condition, covering everything from colonial guilt (“Cache”) to the gravity of death (“Amour”). Ultimately, in Haneke’s own words, his films are “24 lies per second at the service of truth.”

The director turned 72 yesterday. We’re honoring him by offering up four of his films to stream for free on Indiewire’s parent company, SnagFilms. The collection includes his first feature debut, “The Seventh Continent.” Watch all four below: